It is well known in motor vehicles to provide a door hinged for movement between open and closed positions. A latch is provided to latch the door in a closed position. A door handle is provided on the outside of the door to enable unlatching of the door and movement of the door to the open position.
Door handle assemblies traditionally include a handle which is pivotally mounted in a depression on the outside of the door. The handle is lifted or pulled to rotate the handle and thereby operate a rod connected to the door latch. The handle commonly has projections adjacent its ends which are pivotally mounted on a mounting bracket by rivets or other suitable pins or fasteners to provide a pivot axis for the handle. The mounting bracket is in turn riveted or otherwise attached to the door outer panel. A spring acts between the handle and the mounting bracket to pivot the handle to a normal position.
It would be desirable to provide a door handle assembly which would eliminate the need for separate fasteners or pins providing the pivot axis for the door handle. Furthermore, it would be desirable to provide a door handle in which the door handle were pivoted directly upon the door structure thereby eliminating the need for a separate mounting bracket. It would also be desirable to provide a door handle comprised of plastic parts which snap together and eliminate the need for separate fasteners. In addition it would be desirable that the door handle be pivotally mounted on the door reinforcement member underlying the door outer panel, particularly in those vehicles in which the door outer panel is constructed of plastic.
Furthermore, it would be desirable to provide a door handle assembly in which the handle may be assembled from outside the vehicle after the door outer panel is attached to the door.